With a reputation for creating ethereal and sensorial work, Studio Swine’s new undertakings are highly anticipated to say the least. The British duo – made up of Alexander Groves and Azusa Murakami – has most recently enjoyed a six-month stint as New Yorkers, having been invited by Mini’s design incubation space in Brooklyn, A/D/O to be designers in residence.

영국듀오 디자인 팀인 스튜디오 스와인은 최근에 기술과 디자인의 합성을 특성으로 하는 작품등을 선보였다.

뉴욕에는 아이코닉한 스카이라인들과 산업빌딩그리고 다리등등이 주를 이루지만 반면에 놀라울만한 거대한 강과 바다가 흐르고 있다.

이것은 매우 흥미롭과 역동적인 환경이며 주변환경에의해 변하는 해안가의 기후변화에의한 빛의변화는 도시환경과 대조를 이루기도하고 조화를 이루면서 매우 흥미로운 현상들을 만들어낸다.

이것과 비슷하게 우리들이 만들어내는 작품들은 기술과 자연의 융합이다.

On 17 January, the fruits of that experience are being unveiled in the form of a solo exhibition at A/D/O. Studio Swine debuts two new bodies of work that fuse technology with design, while capturing an essence of the city.

‘New York has such an iconic urban skyline, with its big industrial buildings and bridges, but you’ve also got this incredible river flowing through,’ says Groves. ‘It’s a very dynamic atmosphere, literally with its coastal weather and changing light on the river all the time, which in contrast to the urban environment is quite exciting. Similarly, the work that we’ve created is a real convergence of technology and nature.’

One of the ‘Dawn Particles’ blown glass vessels

새벽동트는 순간의 입자들

‘It’s quite different from our past work,’ Murakami adds, ‘In the past we would go to a city and draw inspiration from the city and we would translate that very literally into our work, but this time, it’s more about creating a feeling or an atmosphere. It’s more instinctive rather than narrative-based.’

Natural elements have always played heavily in Studio Swine’s creations, and these new works are no different. The exhibition opens with ‘Dawn Particles’, an electrifying series of hand-blown glass vessels that are filled with the chemical Krypton, in its plasma form, which have been installed in an all-red room.

‘Plasma is a form of matter, and it’s the most abundant in our known universe,’ Groves explains. ‘Dark matter is the unaccountable mass of universe, but when we look up into the night sky, that’s all plasma.’

Detail view of one of the ‘Fog Paintings’ vitrines

안개의 디테일

As a charged gas, plasma is responsive to magnetism – a characteristic Studio Swine has honed in on by passing fluctuating voltages through the gas to change its behaviour in the work. From lightning-like crackles to a high frequency ringing sound that emanates from the glass vibrating, the pieces dynamically acknowledge the presence of larger energy and material forces around us.

From this level of intensity, visitors venture into a more serene second room, where ‘Fog Paintings’ is situated. Expanding on previous efforts of working with fog, this piece is comprised of two vitrines that are gradually filled with fog that is then interjected with shards of light. Intended to evoke the feeling of light passing through the atmosphere, the vitrines’ turbulent, ephemeral contents create a shifting sense of volume and colour to distort one’s sense of weight and time. Inspired by the transcendentalist landscape paintings of Turner and Thomas Cole, both works celebrate the awe of energy and the significance of the invisible world around us.

‘We’re really interested in materials and the tangible materiality of things,’ Groves summarises. ‘We like using technology but we’re not interested in the standard interface that it has. We’ve always been drawn to materials through our practice. Our take on technology still has a very tangible element. Because [the ephemeral] is transient and fleeting, it can make a more powerful memory and experience because the moment disappears. You’ll never see that particular vision again.’§

우리는 감각적이며 만질수있는 종류의 재료들을 선호한다. 우리는 기술을 좋아하지만 규격화된 일반적인 기술은 좋아하지 않는다.

우리는 일시성에 관심이 많다. 즉 지나가고 흐르는것 같은 일시적 현상들 말이다.

이것들은 매우 강력한 기억과 경험들을 선사한다. 왜냐하면 그와 똑같은 현상은 다시 볼수 없기때문이다.

그래서 우리는 재료들을 가지고 여러 기술들을 합성하여 일시성들을 그려낸다.